Did you know that Louis Vuitton, French manufacturer of leather "luxury" goods, will make you a special one-off case for anything you ask for if you can throw down the cash to pay for the work? Apparently this isn't a new service, but I'd never heard of it until today, when I stumbled upon the most ridiculous tech accessory I've ever seen. It's an iPod carrying trunk made of black Taiga leather with brass embellishments and a red microfiber interior made to spec for Chanel designer Karl Lagerfeld. Don't believe me? Peep old boy's red initials engraved on top of the lid.
The majestic travel case houses a smaller drawer inside that can hold 20 iPods at once along with chargers, headphones, Maltese Falcons, and other accessories in Karl's mysterious cache. KL also instructed LV to cut him a compartment specifically for his precious JBL Creature iPod speakers and subwoofer combo. Wait, back up...why does he have 20 iPods? And JBL Creature speakers? Are you kidding me? Is there a spot in there for his Apple Newton and spare floppy disks, too? Someone should probably escort Mr. Lagerfeld to the nearest external hard drive, it'll blow his mind. After that, maybe a crash course on the progressive history of laptops and the current state of high fidelity speakers. Actually, forget it; maybe he can just pay Louis Vuitton to build him a leather-wrapped time machine to transport him back to 2004.
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Reprodepot.com)
Standard black laptop cases: boring. Fancy laptop cases: expensive. Sewing your own laptop/iPod case: Probably totally inconvenient, but in the end perhaps rewarding--if, that is, you like bobbins and seam rippers, or even know what they are.
Still not convinced? You probably can't buy a laptop case in crazy tattoo-inspired fabric (see below), but you could make one. And because this is a family friendly-ish blog, you'll have to click through to some of the other, ahem, interesting fabrics you could pick. Of course, sewing your own will require a few hours of precious time and owning a sewing machine. Or maybe, if you're lucky, you could sweet talk a crafty friend into sewing a case for you.
Wouldn't your laptop look fierce in this?
(Credit: Reprodepot.com)If you do decide to get all crazy creative, Reprodepot.com is selling this Amy Butler pattern, which includes instructions for both laptops (adjustable for most sizes) and some MP3 players (namely: iPod Classic, iPod Touch, iPhone and the Zune).
This week on the Crave vodcast, Brian Tong and Jasmine France show off some vibrating earbuds, a bag made for both beer and music, and the comeback of the Polaroid.
Also, hide the pets, because we might just turn Fluffy into a new iPod case.
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45 iPod Cases)
What do you do with a bunch of old cassette tapes when you can't bear to throw them out? Make iPod cases out of them, of course.
The green people at 45 iPod Cases, which originally made a name for themselves by recycling old 45 records for the media player, is trying to do the same with cassettes for the Nano. We don't think they're as aesthetically successful as the vinyl retro look, but they do deserve some points for ecology's sake.
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Sybarites)
So many obscenely priced gadgets, so little time. Some people might scoff at such purchases as a diamond-encrusted Shuffle, but we understand how difficult it can be to keep up with the Joneses (or Trumps) while being practical at the same time. How, for instance, does one protect a $20,000 media player? Enter the latest Louis Vuitton case, as seen on Sybarites.
Granted, this iPod case isn't designed specifically for the Shuffle, but something tells us that one could be made for the right price. Vuitton knows that its competitors are deep into this game, after all. In fact, this kind of thing is old hat for Fendi--it's gone beyond individual cases to design an entire iPod trunk.
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Dreamwox)
We know people love their iPods, and they understandably want to protect them. But we're curious how far they really need to go. A few months ago, for instance, we cited a titanium case for the Nano that sold for roughly five times the player itself.
The latest suit of armor isn't quite that extreme, but it's definitely more than we would personally need (which isn't saying much, given our slothful ways). The "Bolblbee Solar" may not sound very tough, but don't be fooled--it's "made for adventurers," as Gizmodo says, a weather- and shock-resistant case is built not only to withstand the elements and clumsiness, but it can also run on solar power. All of which makes it the perfect gadget for a cameo appearance on Lost.
Shhh. It's trying to sleep.
(Credit: fredflare.com)Admit it, you're selfish. You never think about the needs of your cell phone. You drop it, pound the keypad, and constantly take it out of your pocket/holster/garter belt without thinking about the toll it takes on your phone.
But this plush cell-phone bed gives you a chance to rectify your self-centered ways. For about $10 you can give your hard-working phone a stylish way to relax. The bed also comes with two pink slippers that work as screen cleaners. Your cell phone isn't the only device that can catch some rest, as your iPod can snuggle up as well (though the two won't fit in bed at the same time).
You're probably thinking this is a silly waste of money, but that's just the selfishness bubbling back to the surface. At least we know that some people know how to treat their phones--the bed is currently sold out.
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Mophie)
This is one of those accessories that made me think, "Wow, I'm surprised nobody came up with this before." The Bevy case for the iPod Shuffle, manufactured by Mophie, is a key ring that holds your itty bitty music player, lets you neatly wrap your earbud cord around it when you're not listening in, and throws in a bottle opener for good measure. Yes, a bottle opener.
It's actually the product of a design competition that took place at Macworld earlier this year.
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Mophie)
Personally, I think attaching the Shuffle to a set of keys is a good idea anyway; just this morning, on the way to the office, my Shuffle managed to unclip itself from my pocket and went flying (but luckily, it stayed attached to my headphone cord, so I was able to retrieve it easily). But adding on that bottle opener? Pure genius. The only catch is that judging by the photo gallery on Mophie's site, you need to take out the Shuffle before cracking open a cold one. That's a drawback, in my opinion, but maybe the Bevy 2.0 will fix this iffy design flaw.
You can pre-order the Bevy case for $15 now.
In all likelihood, there are far fewer than six degrees of separation between you and breast cancer, and the idea of breast cancer awareness through gadgets is not a new one. So why not support a good cause through consumerism? Belkin's new Nano cases provide yet another opportunity for doing so, with 10 percent of the proceeds benefiting Susan G. Komen for the Cure. (Belkin is promising a minimum $100,000 donation.) One eligible cases is the "Hope" Remix Metal for iPod nano ($29.99), which is constructed of durable acrylic and brushed pink metal and features a removable carabiner. The other is the Sport Armband for iPod nano ($29.99), which is a water-resistant, fitness-friendly case with light-pink detailing. The latter is a particular compelling gift idea for a female friend or family member as "exercise substantially reduces the odds of ever getting breast cancer, lengthens survival, and considerably enhances quality of life for women with breast cancer."
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Outblush)
iPod cases have become such a commodity that we can't even say they're a dime a dozen anymore--that almost seems too high. (Unless we're talking about an iPod trunk, though that's a different story.)
But we had a soft spot for this one, as it brought back old memories from junior high and our first stereo. 45 iPod Cases is an outfit that recycles old 45-rpm records and brings them into the digital age to adorn the iconic music players of the 21st century. Outblush says the cases are fashioned from plexiglass, cork and felt, in addition to the original vinyl and label, for--naturally--$45.
It must have been meant to be: The record's center hole apparently fits the iPod's click-wheel exactly. Even if you don't want the case, that's not a bad piece of free trivia.
